Psalms 22:24

22:24 For he did not despise or detest the suffering ¹  of the oppressed; ² 

he did not ignore him; ³ 

when he cried out to him, he responded. ⁴ 

Psalms 78:8

78:8 Then they will not be like their ancestors,

who were a stubborn and rebellious generation,

a generation that was not committed

and faithful to God. ⁵ 

Psalms 78:38

78:38 Yet he is compassionate.

He forgives sin and does not destroy.

He often holds back his anger,

and does not stir up his fury. ⁶ 

Psalms 131:1

Psalm 131 ⁷ 

A song of ascents, ⁸  by David.

131:1 O Lord, my heart is not proud,

nor do I have a haughty look. ⁹ 

I do not have great aspirations,

or concern myself with things that are beyond me. ¹⁰ 

[22:24]  ¹ tn Or “affliction”; or “need.”

[22:24]  ² sn In this verse the psalmist refers to himself in the third person and characterizes himself as oppressed.

[22:24]  ³ tn Heb “he did not hide his face from him.” For other uses of the idiom “hide the face” meaning “ignore,” see Pss 10:11; 13:1; 51:9. Sometimes the idiom carries the stronger idea of “reject” (see Pss 27:9; 88:14).

[22:24]  ⁴ tn Heb “heard.”

[78:8]  ⁵ tn Heb “a generation that did not make firm its heart and whose spirit was not faithful with God.” The expression “make firm the heart” means “to be committed, devoted” (see 1 Sam 7:3).

[78:38]  ⁹ tn One could translate v. 38 in the past tense (“he was compassionate…forgave sin and did not destroy…held back his anger, and did not stir up his fury”), but the imperfect verbal forms are probably best understood as generalizing. Verse 38 steps back briefly from the narrational summary of Israel’s history and lays the theological basis for v. 39, which focuses on God’s mercy toward sinful Israel.

[131:1]  ¹³ sn Psalm 131. The psalmist affirms his humble dependence on the Lord and urges Israel to place its trust in God.

[131:1]  ¹⁴ sn The precise significance of this title, which appears in Pss 120-134, is unclear. Perhaps worshipers recited these psalms when they ascended the road to Jerusalem to celebrate annual religious festivals. For a discussion of their background see L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 219-21.

[131:1]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and my eyes are not lifted up.”

[131:1]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “I do not walk in great things, and in things too marvelous for me.”